The Hunted
by TheSaiyanDemonPrince
Summary: AU in which the Cell of the present timeline was not destroyed as an embryo. Emerging three years after the destruction of the original Cell, his mission differs greatly from his predecessor's.
1. Chapter 1

**The Hunted**

Chapter I: _Prologue_

_If you can hear this voice, you are now self-aware._

_My name is Dr Gero, and I am your creator. _

_As you undoubtedly know, your primary purpose is to destroy the one known as Goku, and extract my revenge. _

_However, to do this, there is a complex series of steps you must undertake before you are ready to make an attempt at his life._

_I initially intended for you to steadily develop over a period of twenty years, until it was time for you to leave the safety of your stasis tank and begin your life._

_Your original mission was to extract the life force of a sufficient number of humans, and gain the power necessary to overwhelm and absorb Cyborgs #17 and 18, who were to be unaware of their purpose in your completion until their time to join you had come, due to their insufferably independent nature._

_However, upon re-analyzing all of the possible variables of such a process, I have concluded that there is far too large a margin of error._

_If the Cyborgs were to catch wind of your mission before you became strong enough to face them, it goes without saying that you would be compromised. _

_On a similar note, if Goku or his friends were to gain knowledge of your existence in the early stages of your life force-extraction phase, they would surely put a stop to you._

_To combat this, I have employed a faster, more efficient way for you to become perfect and carry out your purpose in the shortest time possible._

_Rather than simply relying on the small power gains taken from regular humans to add up and give you the strength required to absorb the Cyborgs, I have instead decided that you will systematically hunt down and extract the energy of the world's most powerful fighters, with the obvious exception of Goku himself. _

_Starting with the weakest of them, each extraction will give you the strength you need to overpower the next in line and work your way up, as well as automatically updating your design with the techniques and abilities of your victims, until only Goku is left; at which point you are to continue with the original plan of incorporating the Cyborgs into your body and achieving perfection._

_Because of the far more rapid power increases that you will experience as a result of the new approach, your embryonic-development time has been cut short by 15 years, due to your initial design not needing to be anywhere near as powerful or have any inbuilt techniques._

_Scientifically speaking, you are flawless, and I have complete faith in your abilities. You are now ready to enter the world and begin your mission. _

_Your name is Cell, and you are my ultimate creation._

**October 26****th****, 770 Age**

Cell could feel the water drain from the tank as the glass shattered around him. He slumped down to the cold, metal floor, and began dragging his limbless body, like an overgrown slug, to where he instinctively knew the exit was. Reaching a small opening in the wall, he slid inside and onto a smooth conveyor belt. A whirring sound initiated and he could feel the mechanism was slowly taking him upwards. A few short minutes passed, and the conveyor belt began to gradually slow down, before coming to a complete stop. He was in a dark tunnel, just barely big enough to house his somewhat rotund frame.

Realizing that the rest was up to him, he slowly started shifting in the direction he was facing, until a loud clunking sound told him that something was opening in front of him. Sure enough, the "wall" at the end of the tunnel began to quickly split apart and he was able to drag himself through. He realized that the somewhat crude, metal entrance to the passage he had just exited was cleverly concealed on the side of a jagged rock face. Now out in the open, he began to contemplate what to do next. Seeing and feeling sunlight for the first time seemed to have no effect on Cell, as he still felt cold and dark on the inside.

What he didn't yet know, however, was that his exposure to the sun was an important part of his evolution. He could feel the brown surface of his skin drying out and making crackling noises. At that moment, a strange sensation came over Cell, as if he felt trapped inside his own body. He began to struggle, trying to force his way out of his skin, which now felt more like a shell. Eventually, it began to split down his back, and he used the opportunity to push himself up and out of his suffocating prison.

Standing up, the feeling of claustrophobia was now completely gone. Cell began to admire his own body. He had arms and hands, legs and feet, things he had initially thought he would be doomed to complete his mission without. Stepping out of the now useless husk that had once held his being, Cell began analyzing the data files stored within his advanced artificial mind. After a few minutes, it became clear where he was to begin his mission. It was a slow start, but every step was essential. His mind was racing with ideas, but eventually he decided on the simplest approach.

He began to run in the direction of his first victim's most likely location. He could have flown, but decided against it for the off chance that someone with ki-sensing abilities just happened to be near his path. As the wind whipped against his face, Cell felt excited… no, exuberant about what he was eventually going to achieve. He would be become the perfect being, and nothing and no one was going to stand in his way.

_Author's Note:_

_The idea for this story came to me when I was re-watching the anime; specifically the Cell Arc. Not only do I have plenty of exciting ideas for it, but I am also looking forward to torturing you with an endless string of cliffhangers. Just kidding, but seriously, I thought I'd introduce a review game for this chapter and possibly several others after it. All you need to do is guess who you think Cell's next (or in this case first) victim is, somewhere in your review. If you guess correctly, you'll get a mention at the end of the following chapter. _


	2. Chapter 2

**The Hunted**

Chapter II: _The First Taste_

Not needing to sacrifice his speed at all, Cell expertly navigated his way through a jagged, rocky area. Jumping over small formations, darting up cliff faces, leaping basins, it was all too easy for the bio-android. Impressed with the time he was making, Cell began to wonder how much farther away his destination was. He was frustrated at the sheer size of the world, and the fact that he had no choice but to travel by foot (for the moment, anyway). Steadily growing impatient, a small wave of relief washed over him as the rocky terrain started to fade into a sandy desert.

"_Not far off now," _Cell assured himself, his feet digging into the sand as he ran. Although the soft traction was slowing him down, he didn't have to put any extra thought into the process of moving through it, which was a nice change. The fact that he was already in the sandy region told him that he was at least two thirds of the way there. In no time at all, he would reach a jungle, and within the thick cluster of trees he would find what he was looking for.

XXXXXXXXXX

Korin stood perched on the rail of his tower-top home. He hadn't moved in days, his eyes fixed on something far, far in the distance, as if he were deep in thought. His staff gripped tightly in his hand, he was starting to realise that his greatest fears were coming into fruition.

Meanwhile, Yajirobe was growing impatient with his only companion, who had been paying him no mind for way too long.

"What the hell is your problem, Korin? You haven't budged an inch in ages! Just say something, will ya?" the portly mountain man demanded, but he got no response.

"_Damn cat must be going senile," _he told himself, although he didn't believe it for a second.

More hours passed, before finally, the wise old cat slumped his shoulders. Hopping down from his perch, he made his way over to Yajirobe, a look of despair in his usually calm eyes.

"You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Something terrible has been set in motion," said the wise feline, his head drooping slightly.

"What do you mean?" asked Yajirobe, who had never seen his friend act so weirdly.

"I'm afraid we have very little time left. The Cell of this timeline has been born, and this time I fear there is no stopping him," said Korin, showing none of his usual quirk.

Yajirobe nearly did a double take. His mouth trembled as a thousand questions all crossed his mind at once.

"W-why is he coming for us?"

"It appears that the failure of the last Cell did not go unnoticed by whomever… or _what_ever is running things now in Dr Gero's lab," Korin stroked his whiskers in anxiety as he spoke.

"But I thought that lab was destroyed," Yajirobe could feel sheer terror bubbling to the surface as all the information was thrown at him.

"Trunks and Krillin must have failed to find a certain, presumably hidden area of the lab when they raided it. Unfortunately for this world, that hidden area was where Cell was being developed."

Unable to remain calm or even rational, Yajirobe ran and leapt over the rail, not caring whether the fall would hurt or kill him. He may not have been as strong as Cell, but he wasn't going to let that freak catch him. The irony of such thoughts were lost on him, as a hand grasped his ankle, stopping his descent dead and snapping his neck from the sudden whiplash.

The last thing he felt was something penetrate his stomach and begin draining away at his insides. Then it all went black.

Korin was well aware of what was happening only a few hundred metres below him, and wasn't surprised in the slightest when a dark green figure ascended up to his home. The night sky shrouded the figure in shadow, but it took no stretch of the imagination to see that he was looking into the eyes of Dr Gero's nightmarish abomination.

"How can I help you, stranger?" asked Korin, his usual demeanor acting as nothing more than a façade.

"I know all about you, cat," came an unnatural, hissing voice.

"And I also know that you are _very _wise, which means that you have known this day was coming for a good while," the voice continued, and as the figure came closer, it could be seen that the words were coming from a disgusting, slater-like mouth.

"Well, you're certainly right about that," Korin replied snidely as the creature's feet touched the ground before him.

He looked up at the horrifying beast that he knew was going to take his life.

"_I guess I could say that I've lived too long, and maybe this is my punishment for defying mortality. But on the flip side, nine-hundred years is longer than most people could comprehend, so what's another five minutes?" _A smirk spread across the wise feline's face.

Grasping the object that he held behind his back, Korin waited for the right moment to strike.

"Allow me to introduce myself; my name is Cell," said the creature, readying his tail.

"Oh believe me, I know," said Korin, and before Cell could respond, the cat leapt forward, tossing a mysterious bottle of bright red fluid at his soon-to-be aggressor's face.

The bottle smashed on impact, dousing Cell in the strange liquid and making a sizzling sound as it burnt away at his flesh.

"Darn you!" Cell screeched, stumbling backwards as pink smoke poured off of his body.

Korin could have used the distraction to run away, but he knew that such attempt would prove ultimately pointless. Instead, he watched in satisfaction as the creature that was destined to end his existence stumbled around in agonizing pain.

However, it wasn't long before the smoke subsided and Cell regained his composure. The deep, cavernous craters in Cell's body where the liquid had splashed began to rapidly regenerate, and in the space of only a few seconds, the damage was completely repaired.

"I'm going to make you _suffer_ for that," Cell whispered, a deranged look in his eyes.

He darted forwards, connecting with a brutal knee to Korin's face that broke most of his teeth and shattered his short, feline snout. Tumbling along the ground, the cat's momentum was only stopped when he collided with the central pillar, causing it to crack.

Advancing on his unconscious victim, Cell licked his lips, now knowing how satisfying the feeling of draining another's life force was.

His tail shot forward and pierced Korin's flesh.

_Author's Note:_

_Haha, I had a feeling that nobody would guess Cell's first victim(s) correctly. In case you were wondering, Korin was the actual target, but Cell decided to drain Yajirobe anyways, you know, because he's evil like that. Keep guessing though; who do you think Cell will be hunting down next?_

_- TheSaiyanDemonPrince_


End file.
